


Foregone Conclusions

by snaeken



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-07
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-12 05:26:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29255175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snaeken/pseuds/snaeken
Summary: He had scoffed when Liam said Nolan was dangerous; hadn’t taken the warning seriously enough when Mason and Corey agreed. Brett thought Gabe was the real threat of the two. That should have been obvious to anyone, after Scott McCall’s house got shot up. Compared to Gabe, Nolan seemed more like a kid who got in way over his head than an actual credible threat.He should have listened.
Relationships: Nolan/Brett Talbot
Comments: 6
Kudos: 14





	Foregone Conclusions

**Author's Note:**

> Another 2018 project, updated and removed from the WIP pile.

Brett has imagined his death more times than he cares to admit. Werewolves in Beacon County are hardly known for their life expectancy, after all.

Will he be burned alive like his parents? Like the Hales?

Will someone finally succeed in poisoning him? They say third time’s the charm; he might not get so lucky a third time.

Will he be shot through the head? The heart? Put down like the so-called mutt he is?

All these scenarios, all these hypothetical deaths, and not once did he imagine it would be at the hands of a scared teenage boy wielding a knife.

Brett shifts on the spot and feels the cold metal brush against his throat.

“Don’t move!” Nolan yelps, pressing the blade down harder, not quite enough to break the skin but close. Very close.

Daring to glance down, seeing Nolan’s white-knuckled grip on the blade, his slightly trembling hand, Brett’s survival instincts scream at him to run. Any abrupt movement could end up being his last.

The kid stinks of fear and anxiety, the same as near enough everyone else in Beacon Hills does as of late. But those who are scared are unpredictable, and unpredictability is almost as dangerous as malicious intent.

It’s Brett’s own fault that he’s in this situation now, at least partially. He had scoffed when Liam said Nolan was dangerous; hadn’t taken the warning seriously enough when Mason and Corey agreed. Brett thought Gabe was the real threat of the two. That should have been obvious to anyone, after Scott McCall’s house got shot up. Compared to Gabe, Nolan seemed more like a kid who got in way over his head than an actual credible threat.

He should have listened.

Now Nolan has him, and Gabe probably has Lori, and once again they’re both living on borrowed time.

The worst part is, he knows under normal circumstances he could easily overpower Nolan and make his escape. Even now, he could take his chances and hope for the best. The issue is the knife currently pressed to his throat; it’s coated in wolfsbane. _Yellow_ wolfsbane, a particularly potent strain. Even the smallest nick would likely be his end. But if there’s one thing Brett has never allowed himself to be, it’s a victim.

“You know what, little hunter boy?” Brett says, forcing himself to remain incredibly still as Nolan jolts in surprise. “I’ve had enough of this game. Get on with it.”

It takes a moment for Nolan to respond. Surprise bursts off of him, followed by suspicion. “You… you _want_ me to kill you?”

Brett nods, suppressing the urge to shudder as the knife brushes against his Adam’s apple. “Hunters burned my parents to death. We were taken in by Satomi’s pack, then the dead pool happened. Hunters slaughtered half of them for _money_ ,” he spits the word, senses Nolan flinch even if he can’t see it. “And now your lot has slaughtered the rest of them. Your lot killed Satomi. My little sister is probably about to die too, if she isn’t already dead.” Tears threaten to well up in his eyes and it takes all of his strength to stop them from falling. Even now, he’ll never give a hunter the satisfaction of showing them weakness “So answer me this, little hunter boy. Everyone I’ve ever loved has been murdered by hunters. Who are the real monsters here?”

Nolan exhales shakily, shuddering against his back. Intentionally or not, he ever so slightly lightens the press of the knife against Brett’s throat. The reek of shame slithers into the space he created, mingling with his fear and anxiety.

“I don’t have a choice,” Nolan whispers, as if Brett should _pity_ him.

“You always have a choice,” Brett counters. “That’s just an excuse people use when they’re too weak to look for a better option.”

“I just… You’re a teenager like me. We both play lacrosse.” Nolan sounds so genuinely conflicted, Brett could almost feel bad for him. Almost. “In another life, we could’ve been friends.”

Brett scoffs. “Forgive me, but it’s hard to believe that since you’re pressing a knife to my throat.”

Nolan’s shame grows stronger; it truly is a pungent smell. “I’m sorry,” he says, but his voice and his hand have both steadied out; he’s made a decision.

Brett squeezes his eyes shut in anticipation of the end. All he can hope for now is that Lori doesn’t suffer.

He waits. And he waits.

Then the knife clatters against the ground.

Brett startles, looking from the knife to Nolan with wide eyes. He presses a hand to his own throat, relieved to find it’s free of blood when he examines it. Nolan seems equally surprised, if the few steps back he’s taken are any indication.

“Go,” he says, voice wavering slightly again. Fear has overtaken the shame, but they both know Brett’s not who he’s scared of now. No, he’s scared of his fellow hunters. “You need to hit me, or, or claw me. Or knock me out, or just. Just make it look like you got away.”

Brett doesn’t answer, keeping one eye on Nolan and the other on the knife at his feet. Nothing would satisfy him more than giving a hunter a taste of their own medicine. He’s not out of danger though, not yet. At any moment there could be another trick, an ambush.

“Go up the stairs, the last door on the right, that’s where. That’s where Gabe should be.”

 _And Lori_ goes unspoken. Nolan’s heartbeat doesn’t skip, or stutter; Brett knows he doesn’t have the control to stop or manipulate it, even if he wanted to. He’s telling the truth.

“This doesn’t absolve you,” Brett states, sensing for any heartbeats nearby. Nolan nods, eyes closed. “And if Lori and I don’t both make it out of this building alive, neither will you.” It’s not a threat, it’s a promise.

There’s nobody immediately outside the room they’re currently in, but there are plenty of other heartbeats in the building. Thankfully, nestled in amongst all the other heartbeats, is the only one that matters; Lori’s.

Easing the door open, Brett locks eyes with Nolan for a moment before darting down the corridor, towards the stairwell, all the while keeping his eyes and ears open for any approaching hunters.

Nolan actually let him go.

He’s about to find out if it’s a mercy or a cruelty.


End file.
